N.J. activist James O'Keefe encourages tea party members in East Windsor to conduct investigations

AP Photo/Patrick SemanskyJames O'Keefe, left, and Stan Dai walk out of the St. Bernard Parish jail in Chalmette, La., in this 2010 file photo.

EAST WINDSOR — James O'Keefe, who gained fame secretly videotaping groups like NPR, Acorn and Planned Parenthood, addressed a crowd of tea party activists, encouraging them to conduct similar investigations.

O'Keefe, a New Jersey native and Rutgers graduate, told the packed room of about 150 that his project is about exposing hypocrisy. He encouraged those there to partake in their own efforts, including in response to a question saying he would like to see citizens target judges with similar videos.

"Anyone who is abusing the trust of our people needs to be investigated," O'Keefe said. "It's not a conservative movement. It's not right-wing. It's a movement to expose hypocrisy."

O'Keefe's speech was part of the tea party "citizens convention" to train activists how to organize and run political campaigns. The one-day convention was titled "The Battle for Trenton" and focused on strategies to win legislative seats in the November election.

O'Keefe stayed out of the political foray, offering only one piece of a advice to an attendee who inquired if he should use undercover videos in political campaigns. O'Keefe advised against it, saying videos should be done by citizens, not political operations.